If you have seen my post yesterday, you’ll have read about my recent designation as “meat poet” for Norfolk Pendulum, a grocer and locally sourced, organic meat shop that just opened Sunday to service Norfolk and the entire Hampton Roads area.
The “meat poems” I wrote for them were so much fun, I thought I’d strike while the griddle, er, iron, was still hot.
So this afternoon, waiting to pick up my youngest daughter from school, I penned some 3-line poems on a napkin I found in the glove compartment of my car. They are in the manner of the haiku, but with a 3-5-3 syllable-to-line variation over the haiku’s 5-7-5; and still mostly/generally on the subject of meat, therefore I thought it fitting that they be thought of as Moo-ikus.
Moo-ikus
1
glass of milk,
pat of sweet butter—
dreams, medium rare.
2
who eats sweet
clover all day long?
come back home.
3
divided,
all parts are named for
utility.
4
don’t call me
heifer, or brindled
cow: that’s low.
5
but muscle
and fat are a pairing:
a fleshing out.
6
no wieners
here; only the streaky
rashers we love.
7
don’t bust your
chops: trim your filet
with flowers.
8
remember
flank’s skirted issues?
just revise.
9
crown of rib
or steak a la pobre?
look at me.
10
when in doubt,
tie the roast with twine;
then baste it.
*hee*
I particularly like #2.
When I was growing up in Newport News, my mom hauled us around to the butcher, among other places. I don’t think Newport News has had an independent butcher for many years. Now there’s one, I learn here, and with an official poet, across the water.
Do check it out if you can, Peter.